Flipping the Coin
by Lovely Belle
Summary: What happened in Penny's life, during the musical's time frame.
1. Act I

Hey guys! I always wondered what Penny's life was like. Because even though she's a main character, we don't really get to hear much about her. So this kind of explores what she went through during the events of Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog.

Disclaimer: If some of the dialogue sounds familiar, that's cuz it's from the show. I don't own any of it, and this was purely a personal exploration project. Hope you enjoy!

Flipping the Coin

Act I

Penny Cooper stood on the corner with her petition.

"Will you help?" She tried to offer the clipboard to a passing couple, but they just looked down and hurried away. It was just as embarrassing for her to stand on the corner and offer them the papers, as it was for them to turn her down.

"Please, just sign. You don't even have to read it." She asked a mother and her child. They, hurried along, mother urging the child into a walk so fast it was almost a run. Penny sighed. She just wanted to make the world a better place for other people, since she couldn't do that for herself. She looked around at all the people going about their days. The teenage girls on their way to the mall, parent's twenties sitting safely in the pockets of their jean shorts, ready to be spent on anything from food to cosmetics. These girls wouldn't know hardship. There were the teen age boys, skateboarding across benches and handrails. They looked scruffy, but Penny knew that each one of them had a parent that loved them. None of these people, not the teens, or the caring mother, not the couple, knew how terrible the homeless had it.

But she did, and that spurred her on, more then any amount of signatures could. She knew the cold nights, where you could only fall half-asleep, and had to be ready at a moment's notice to protect yourself or your belongings, how you had to endure the looks of pity and disgust from every passerby, it they bothered to look at you at all.

"Penny?" A voice broke her out of her revere. It was her room mate, and coworker, Nicole.

"We need to get to work darlin'." Nicole called from the window of her car. Penny tucked the clipboard under her arm and quickly slid into the passenger side of the car, ready to get out of the neighborhood as fast as she could.

Penny worked as the receptionist at a charity clinic where Nicole was a nurse. She was happy with her job, and the way it was going. She was able to help people, and it didn't matter wether or not they had insurance, or could pay at all....

"Penny!" Penny looked up from her desk to see the HR rep. walking toward her.

"Hey Mr. Johnson." She greeted, smiling. They say if you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life. Penny's never actually worked a day in her life.

"Penny." He repeated, in a more somber tone. Penny shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She clicked the caring hands window closed on the ancient computer, and started organizing the stacks of paperwork on her desk.

"You've been a wonderful employee, but the checks came in, and there's just..." Penny braced herself for the worst. She had tried to make herself invaluable, and she thought she had done a good job, she had impeccable bookkeeping, and there had never been one complaint about her service, but apparently it hadn't been enough.

"I trust you know what to do, and you'll clear out by Friday." Mr. Johnson actually had the decency to look saddened as he walked away. Penny angrily dumped the cardboard box under her desk of things that needed to be filed, let someone else do it, and began packing up her things.

Penny didn't have very much, only a few silly photos in funny frames, and her 'office utensils', which she dumped into the box, not caring wether or not they survived the rough treatment. She hefted the box, balancing it on her hip, while she navigated her way to Nicole's station.

"Penny? What do you need?" Nicole asked, concernedly looking up at her friend.

"I got fired." Penny mumbled, embarrassed. "Can I leave my stuff here till you get off?" She asked Nicole.

"Of course! Where are you gonna go? I'll just pick you up when I'm done here." Nicole offered, taking the box over the laminate countertop and stowing it out of sight.

"I think I'm just gonna head over to the park, maybe something will happen there." Penny said, before turning toward the door.

"Pen," Nicole stopped her. "I'm so sorry." Penny looked back at her sympathetic friend with a smile.

"No, don't worry. Everything happens." She said, before walking out the door to the street.

Penny ended up in the city park, sitting on a bench, reading. She was trying to lose herself in the plot of the story, but her mind kept wandering towards all the new problems she had to solve. Rent, food, utility bills, all the expenses that Nicole's paycheck wouldn't totally cover. Penny was so engrossed in thought, a slight clicking in the bushes made her jump. She looked around, alarmed. She had heard plenty of horror stories of just what happened to lonely women on their own. Penny marked the page in her book, and got up. A woman on the move was far safer then the girl who sat oblivious, In her mind anyways.

Time must have flown by while Penny was lost in thought, because she ran into Nicole on her walk around the perimeter of the park a couple minutes later.

They rode home in an awkward silence, arriving none too soon at the apartment they shared.

"So, how was the park?" Nicole asked, trying to start conversation as she flopped down on their couch, in front to the tiny tv. Nicole loved her reality shows, and Penny hated tv, so the room fell silent.

"I'll make dinner." Penny suggested, a weak excuse to get out of there and be alone, which seemed to be what she really wanted to do.

Penny woke up the next morning to find the house empty, and a note from Nicole, saying that she'd be out late. Penny wasn't bothered by this, she actually appreciated the time alone every once in a while, and if it involved Nicole going out on party days, it was worth it.

Penny dressed quickly, and, foregoing breakfast, grabbed her clipboard and headed down the street to the condemned hotel. She sighed, thinking of her failure yesterday, and steeling herself for the worst today. She stood in front of the building, asking people as politely as she could to sign the petition, pleading that they didn't even have to read it. But the general public is blind to the needs of the lower class, and after an hour, she still had no signatures. Some movement in an alleyway caught her attention, and, despite the better judgment, she walked over to investigate. Luckily for her, what she found was less then terrifying.

It was one of the regulars, she thought, from the laundry mat. The shy, awkward, sweet guy who lived alone, hadn't had a girlfriend in a while, and worked with chemicals. Penny prided herself on being able to read people and their laundry. She also though he may have a crush on her, but she wasn't quite sure yet.

In any case, he may sign, and it didn't look like he was doing anything important, so she nervously walked up to him.

"Will you lend a caring hand?" She asked, as sweetly as she could. Penny had received many answers to this question, apologetic, rude, sympathetic, but she had never been screamed at. There weren't even words, just "Aaaah!" She was speechless.

"What?" He asked, after calming down a bit.

"I was wondering if I could just..." She paused, it was the guy from the laundry mat. That made this so much easier.

"I know you!" She smiled, maybe they could become laundry buddies? 'Don't get ahead of yourself Penny girl.' She chastised.

"Hello, you know me? Cool!" He seemed pleasantly surprised, and slightly over eager. 'Maybe that laundry fantasy isn't so far off..'

"I mean..." There was that awkwardness, she smiled, it was adorable. "Yeah, you do. Do you?" It took Penny a second to wrap her mind around that circle. Was he not from the coin wash? She suddenly felt really embarrassed.

"From the laundry mat?" it was more of a question then a statement. If this wasn't him, Penny was pretty sure she would die of embarrassment.

"Oh, Wednesdays and Saturdays except twice last month you missed a weekend." Penny was slightly taken aback by that. Crush theory, check! He seemed to realize that that wasn't what he should have said, so he tried desperately to cover it up, "or... if that was you, it could have been someone else." She found it adorable, even if it was slightly creepy. But then again, didn't she know all about his schedule? She wasn't really one to talk, let alone judge someone on the fact that they were observant.

"I mean I've seen you." Penny paused, unable to decide how exactly to react to this situation.

"Billy, is my name." She smiled at his stilted sentence coverup.

"I'm Penny" She smiled, and cheerfully extended a hand, but Billy has already gone back to his phone-remote contraption. She hesitatingly continued,

"Um, what are you doing?" She asked. Come on Penny, reel him in. First signature of the- well, ever, actually.

"Texting, it's very important." He was so engrossed in the little buttons on the touch screen that she had a feeling she could just walk away and nobody would notice.

"It's very important, or I would stop." Penny rolled her eyes, but stayed put, this was the most action she'd seen all day, and she wasn't going to give up just yet.

"What are you doing?" Penny prepared herself to give the speech she'd practiced dozens of times back at the apartment. She glanced at the clipboard and began reciting.

"Actually, I'm out here volunteering for the caring hands homeless shelter, Can you spare a minute?" Why was he looking away? 'The homeless aren't that scary.' Penny mentally rolled her eyes.

"Um, Okay, go." Penny smiled, a little nervous, this was the first person she'd gotten to pay her any mind. She was going to get a grip and dive right in.

"Okay, um, we are hoping to open a new location soon, expand our efforts." He looked interested, that was good, right? "There's this great building nearby that the city is just going to demolish and turn into a parking lot.." Telling someone besides her reflection about this injustice felt really good, Penny was surprised at how, instead of shrinking back for his approval, she kept going, caring more about her cause then his opinion of her. She smiled.

"But if we get enough signatures--"

"Signatures?" Billy cut her off, rolling his eyes and sounding cynical, and completely unlike he had earlier.

"Yeah." Penny matched his tone. What else was she supposed to do. A hero could maybe just convince the mayor, but she wasn't a hero, not yet at least. And he was looking at his phone again.

"I'm sorry, go on." He seemed sorry, almost. But Penny let it go, and continued.

"I was saying, um, maybe we could get the city to donate the building to our cause." He looked cynical again, but she continued.

"We would be able to provide two hundred and fifty new beds, get people off the streets and into job training..." and he was distracted again. What was so important that he couldn't spend two minutes listening to her? Penny was ready to give up. "So they can buy rocket packs and go to the moon, and become florists." She finished, only slightly bitter. But the in and out mood swings she had witnessed seemed to hint at something else.

"You're not really interested in the homeless, are you?" He turned back, finally paying attention to her, and not whatever was down the ally way.

"No, I am." He at least sounded a little apologetic for his in attentiveness. "But they're a symptom, you're treating a symptom as the disease rages on, consuming the human race." Penny almost wished she could write this down, for an awkward, almost anti-social person, Billy had a way with words, she could use this metaphor in her own speech, and maybe it would be more effective.

"The fish rots from the head, so they say," He made a lot of sense. "So my thinking is, why not cut off the head?" Wait, cut off the head of what the disease is ravaging, which is the human race. Penny's mind finally caught up.

"Of the human race?" She asked. That couldn't be what he had meant to imply, but that's how it came out. He looked slightly uncomfortable, now that his metaphor had been reiterated and examined.

"It's not a perfect metaphor, I'm talking about an overhaul of the system." Penny felt elated again, they were on the same page! "Putting the power in different hands." Wasn't that what she was trying to say?

"Well, I'm all for that." But he missed the point of the petition. "This petition is about the building?" She ventured again, and was almost surprised to her him say,

"I'd love to sign it." She handed him the pen.

"Thank you!" Penny flipped through the actual petition to the signature page, and pointed.

"I-I'm sorry, I come on strong." Penny almost missed his comment, in the heady rush she was getting, Billy was signing, and standing so close, he smelled like detergent and something she couldn't really place. It was like a dream, then he stepped away, and the feeling was mostly gone.

"But you signed." She smiled, clutching the petition, all the more precious, since someone else approved.

"Well, I wouldn't want to turn my back on a fellow..." Fellow what? Humanitarian? Common-place hero? "Laundry... person." Oh, well, it was better then nothing, she guessed.

"Well, if we can't stick together, I don't-"" Billy's phone made a terrible screeching sound, but she ignored it, he didn't, and he turned around again, effectively cutting her off. When he didn't turn back, Penny decided it was time to excuse herself.

"I'll probably see you there." Then she walked off. Well, she _thought _he liked her. With the relationship drama aside, she jumped a little bit. The whole exchange had given her the confidence to more actively pursue the elusive signatures. There was a distinct bounce in her step as she exited the ally way, and a smile on her face as she approached the first person she saw on the street.

"Homelessness is a disease, that's corrupting the human race." Okay, maybe that was a little strong, but the woman she had stopped wasn't trying to leave. "If you sign this petition, Caring Hands homeless shelter will be able to convince the city council to donate that building there," she pointed to the goal, "so we can turn it into a shelter, and save the people of Los Angeles from this horrid disease." The woman signed. That was two signatures in the span of five minutes. Penny was getting really excited now. She was actually helping, not just pretending to, and she was going to make a difference. She thought happily about how the shelter would hire her to run the building she would get them, and how then she and Nicole would not have to worry about their rent, or bills, because managing a homeless shelter would get her enough to cover everything herself. She smiled giddily, and wished she had a cell phone so she could call Nicole and tell her the good news. Penny was so wrapped up in dreaming about her perfect future, that he didn't notice the black van racing towards her until it was only feet away. Was this how she was going to go? She'd always wanted to go out at a high point in her life, but this couldn't qualify. Penny panicked, what was she supposed to do? She couldn't out run the van, and it had turned the corner by it's self, so what if it swerved and hit her as she tried to step out of the way? Luckily, Penny didn't have to think for long, because Captain Hammer jumped, from where Penny couldn't tell, and pushed her out of the way, preparing himself to stop the van with brute strength. Penny waited to hear the- what ever sound a car made when it ran over an unsuspecting human, but the sound never came. Instead, she heard two raps on the van, and voices start arguing.

"You Idiot!" Who was that? Penny tried to push herself up to see who had joined Captain Hammer.

"Dr. Horrible, I should have known you were behind this." Penny had heard of Dr. Horrible. He was a two-bit villain, nothing threatening, but apparently he had been underestimated. Penny's hand hit something wet, and she it finally registered that she was laying in a giant pile of garbage. Suddenly, it was more important to get out. But standing up was harder then it seemed. The voices continued.

"You almost killed her." Her? Did he care about the car that much? Penny couldn't imagine it was his. Black didn't seem to be his color.

"I remember it differently." Captain Hammer corrected.

"Is she-" Dr. Horrible cut him off. Penny realized that she couldn't focus on their banter and get up at the same time, so she tuned the two men out. She finally managed to get to the top of the pile, and saw Captain Hammer with his hands around Dr. Horrible's throat. Penny was not an advocate for violence, ever. So She started talking to distract Hammer, who in her opinion, as a hero, should have come and helped her up.

"Thank you hammer man, I don't think I can explain how important it was that you stopped the van." She was, however, dying to explain how important it was. If she had been crushed, who would be able to take her place in the quest for the shelter? Penne blushed as she tripped over a bag, giving up hope that one of those men would be chivalrous and help her out, since unfortunately, Captain Hammer seemed to be more interested in smashing Dr. Horrible's head into the van, and staring at her like a piece of meat. "I would be splattered, I'd be crushed under debris." She stepped onto solid ground, thankfully, and got a good look at her, admittedly handsome hero. She couldn't help it, she was smitten. "Thank you, sir, for saving me." He looked her up and down, before callously remarking,

"Don't worry about it." He tossed Dr. Horrible aside, and turned back to her. Penny continued, admitting to herself that she wanted him. "You came from above." Well, that was cheesy, Penny wished she could take it back. "I wonder what you're captain of." She murmured, trying another line out before she actually said it.

"Seems destiny ends with me saving you." He looked like he was seeing her for the first time, and he started towards her. Penny was nervous. She'd never picked up a guy before, let alone one like Captain Hammer, and her last relationship had ended so badly. But then he was flexing, and she found herself admitting how fast her heard was actually going.

"Must be in shock." She excused it, sheepishly, but who could blame her for the word vomit when he was looking at her like that? Penny couldn't help but go all the way with what she said next.

"Assuming I'm not loving you to death." He smiled, and she knew she'd won. "Please give me a sec to catch my breath." He stroked her face, and she took a step back. It was a little much, even though he seemed to agree on their instant connection.

"I'm Penny." She offered her hand.

"Captain Hammer" He said, as he took her hand, and pulled her closer to him. "But you knew that." She smiled, he was cute, even if what he said was corny.

"So Penny, you must be shaken." He started. Penny wasn't really, but she nodded anyways.

"How about you get cleaned up, and I can take you out to make up for it?" It was phrased like a question, but Penny knew she couldn't say no. Besides, it looked to her like she had the city's biggest hero on a string, and that could do wonders for her plan for the future.

"That sounds nice." She agreed, and Captain Hammer started leading her towards where she assumed he had parked his car.


	2. Act II Part I

Disclaimer: If some of the dialogue sounds familiar, that's cuz it's from the show. I don't own any of it, and this was purely a personal exploration project. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

ACT II

"What's a pretty lady like you doing in the slums?" Captain Hammer asked as he unlocked one of the fanciest cars Penny had ever seen.

"I'm volunteering for the Caring Hands Homeless Shelter, trying to get a petition signed so the mayor will donate one of the old buildings so we can turn it into a home." Penny went on to describe the job training, medical attention and just general aid they would be able to provide, only stopping when the car did.

"Where are we?" She asked, stunned. The house he had pulled up to was huge. It was almost bigger then her apartment building.

"I have somethings to pick up, so I figured you could just shower here." Captain Hammer explained, a little surprised at her confusion.

"Oh, Okay." He smiled and walked around to help Penny out of the car.

'Now he helps.' Penny mentally rolled her eyes at the universes bad timing, but let Captain Hammer lead her into his house.

Penny was not stupid, and as soon as Captain Hammer showed her where the shower was, and passed her a change of clothes.

"It's promotional gear." He had said, and left. Penny locked the door, and put a decorative stool, and laundry hamper in front of it. She couldn't believe she was about to take a shower here. The bathroom was uncomfortably mirrored, and Penny found that no matter where she stood, or which way she faced, she would have to suffer the awkwardness of watching herself strip and shower. If she had studied psychology, Penny guessed she would have discovered some interesting things about the man that owned the house. As it were, she hopped in and out of the shower at a record speed, and dressed even faster. The clothing he had provided was not promotional, (unless they were for unwholesome companies.) and Penny couldn't help but feel self conscious in the tank top that exposed too much, and the jeans that sat too low. But she was in too deep to back out now. Penny braided her wet, tangled hair, and folded her clothes before moving her homemade barricade and opening the door, only to find Captain Hammer on the other side, fist raised to knock.

"Oh, you're ready." He stepped aside so she could get out. "I can take those." He offered, picking Penny's folded jeans and top from her arms. Penny opened her mouth to protest, but her clothes were gone, and she was being herded towards the stairs.

They ended up at a coffee shop near her apartment.

"So, Captain Hammer, how did you end up as a super hero?" Penny asked, sitting up a little straighter, to match Hammer's heroic posture.

"It's not a story really," Hammer started. "See Penny, when I was a kid, I realized that I was bigger then all the other kids, and obviously, bigger means better." Penny wanted to correct him, but stayed silent. "I used the muscles I had to diffuse fights."

"Oh." Penny urged, making sure she looked interested.

"And my Heroic tendencies just kept going." He smiled.

"Really? It was just instinct?" Penny asked, surprised that it was not a longer story.

"Well, there was one time my parents had to sit me down and say 'Jason Hammer'-" Penny looked up.

"Your name is Jason?" She asked, stopping Hammer mid-sentence.

"Yes." He answered, as if that was something she should have known. "Why?"

"No, real reason, I just really like that name." Penny smiled, no man named Jason would be a bad relationship she figured.

"Any ways, they did have to tell me that climbing to the tops of buildings was not an appropriate show of power, even if I was just doing it to save a cat." Penny giggled. The idea of a younger Jason being scolded for something like that.

"So, what's your favorite rescue?" Penny asked, sipping the iced coffee he'd purchased for her.

"Yours of course." He smiled, and Penny almost choked on her coffee in surprise. "Mine?" She asked astounded. Hers could not have been the best story. Not in a million years. "Why mine?"

"Because we ended up here." He replied nonchalantly. Penny smiled for what must have been the thousandth time that night, and they moved on to another topic.

"I had a really great time today Jason." Penny said, as they stood on her door step. Captain Hammer looked uncomfortable in her apartment building, and after seeing his house, Penny could understand why. It wasn't the greatest, but it was all she and Nicole could afford. Penny came out of her thoughts when she felt Captain Hammer's leather gloved hand take hers.

"I'm glad Penny. We'll do it again tomorrow." It wasn't a question, and Penny was not sure how she felt about not having a choice.

"How about dinner? I know a really cute little, diner." Penny fumbled. As much as she really did like Captain Hammer, she wanted to be in her element for their next date.

"Of course, I'll pick you up at seven?" Penny nodded, and realized that Captain Hammer was going to kiss her good-bye. She wasn't one to kiss on the first date, but Penny quickly realized that when she was with Jason Hammer, it didn't matter what kind of girl she thought she was, she would always end up doing what he wanted her too. But as she kissed Captain Hammer back, Penny decided that a little personality change couldn't hurt. They didn't break apart until someone roughly ran into them. Penny was a little miffed, but it was a small hallway, so she let it slide. Captain Hammer, however, turned and barked a harsh "Watch it!" at the retreating back. The man turned, and for a second Penny thought it looked like Billy, but by the time he had flipped Captain Hammer the bird, and turned back Penny wasn't so sure.

"Penny?" The apartment door opened and Nicole stuck her head out.

"Hey Nicole!" Penny gave a little wave. "This is Ja-"

"Captain Hammer." Captain Hammer cut Penny off, with a frightening look.

"Nicole." Nicole offered her hand, and gave a small squeal when Captain Hammer shook it.

"Well, I just wanted to make sure Penny got home alright." He kissed her again, and Penny found herself turning bright red at the PDA. "Bye."

"Good-bye." Penny closed the door, and turned to see an overenthusiastic Nicole sitting on the couch.

"You're dating CAPTAIN HAMMER?" Nicole practically screamed.

"Yeah." Penny shrugged, despite the stunned look on her room mate's face.

"How?"

"He saved me. I'm gonna go to bed, it's been a long day." Nicole nodded, disappointed, and wished Penny a good night.

The next morning found Penny scouring the job wanted ads with a red pen. Unfortunately, instead of paying attention to the ads, she had spent quite some time doodling the crash scene from the day before. Penny had never been a particularly good artist, so when Nicole snorted coffee over her shoulder onto the ad for a plumber, Penny wasn't surprised.

"Any luck?" Nicole asked, getting a sponge to wipe up the mess (Penny had done away with disposable paper products almost as soon as she moved in.)

"Nope, I have to either have a full college education, or be willing to take off my clothes to get any of these jobs." Penny sighed, putting down her pen.

"Well the Penny I saw last night would have been qualified for one of those jobs." Nicole said as she sat down across the table. Penny shot Nicole her best death glare, and Nicole choked again.

"I'm kidding!" She assured Penny, smiling. "But when you're the lucky girl dating Captain Hammer..." Nicole trailed off, she had been single for a long time now, and Penny knew that now that she had gotten past the celebrity status, Nicole was hurting, just a little bit.

"Hey," Penny joked, "Maybe I could get you set up with that Dr. Horrible now, we could bring world peace one double date at a time." They laughed at the absurdity.

"Actually, I was gonna try to get to know that new guy next door, you know, the damp one that looks like a Beatles reject?" Penny did know who she was talking about. It was the room mate of their recluse neighbor.

"Didn't you say he smelled?" Penny asked, going back to the ads.

"It's nothing a good shower can't cure, I'm sure." Nicole looked at the clock. "Well, I'm off to work, you'll be alright here?" Penny nodded.

"Maybe I'll have a job by the time you get back." She answered optimistically.

"You better, or I'm gonna kick you out." They both knew Nicole was only partially joking.

By the time Penny had found five offers to pursue, it was three in the afternoon. Despite knowing she was going to be strapped for time, Penny headed out to apply.

By five thirty, she had been turned down by two food chains, three retail shops, and been sarcastically told she'd be considered at both banks in her neighborhood. Wanting to look for more help wanted signs, but knowing she couldn't be late tonight, Penny grudgingly hopped on a bus and headed home.

After taking a shower, Penny felt like maybe she would be ready to do this. She had pulled her favorite lilac blouse from her dresser, and matched it with a nice blue skirt, and was now searching the apartment for shoes. Penny usually just wore sneakers, the juvenile ones, with the prints on them, but she knew those would be totally inappropriate for a date. At last she found what she was looking for. They were at least four inches high, but the brown heels were the only things she had that were even remotely acceptable. Penny gave her reflection an approving once over, and heard the knock. Penny grabbed her wallet, and opened the door.

Penny had picked the Soup Kitchen on Sixth street that she normally volunteered at for their dinner.

"This is what you do?" Captain Hammer had asked incredulously as they sat down. Penny nodded.

"The homeless cause is really special, at least to me." She said, poking at her soup.

"Why? What could you have to do with being homeless?" Captain Hammer scoffed, and Penny could see his point. She'd come a long way.

"Well, a couple years ago I was evicted from my apartment, and fired from my job, so I really had no place to go." Penny looked down, her short bout of homelessness was an uncomfortable topic, even now.

"I lived on the streets until I was able to get a job at Caring Hands."

"You were homeless?" Captain Hammer asked. Penny looked up and saw that even though he looked a disgusted, there was worry in his eyes.

"Was, I'm not now." Penny re-considered, "and I hopefully won't be at the end of the month."

"Why would you be?" Penny bit her lip, a little hesitant to continue, was this really an appropriate date topic?

"I don't have a job anymore, and my room mate my kick me out if I can't afford the rent." Captain Hammer shook his head.

"Penny, you won't have to worry about that. As long as you're with me, you'll never have to worry about being homeless." The statement wasn't as reassuring for Penny as he meant it to be.

"Thank you." She smiled warmly. "But everything happens, and now I know what is really important. It's really hard to be ignored by the rest of the world. That's why I want to help so badly." Penny was trying to make Captain Hammer understand. "Look around, we're living with the lost and found." She walked over to make sure the woman at the next table was alright. Even while she was on a date, the volunteer instinct wouldn't die.

"Just when you feel you've almost drowned, you find yourself on solid ground." As she said the metaphor, she realized how true it was. She sat back down, and saw that the people around them were gathering the courage to approach their hero.

"You believe there's good in everybody's, keep it safe and sound." She found herself thinking the Caring Hands motto as she watched Jason interact with one of the usual occupants. 'With hope you can do your part to turn a life around.' Penny was surprised at how happy it made her to see Jason making an effort. She assumed that this was why she accepted the invitation to stay the night at his house, instead of insisting that he take her home.

Penny woke the next morning feeling more well rested then she had in a long time, despite the admittedly late hour they had actually fallen asleep. She stretched, relishing the feel of the high quality sheets against her skin. She must have been more tired then she thought, because she woke again to the feeling of lips on her neck.

"Jason?" Penny murmured sleepily, trembling as he ran his hand up her leg.

"Morning Penny."

"Morning. What time is it?" Penny felt the bed shift before Jason replied,

"Twelve thirty." Penny sat up, panicked.

"I need to call Nicole." She responded to Jason's questioning look.

"Who?" He asked, annoyed. Penny got out of bed, taking one of the throw blankets with her.

"My room mate. She must be so worried..." He was kissing her neck again.

"Leave it, what's she going to do?" He asked, obviously wanting her to come back to bed, but Penny pulled away.

"Where's your phone?" She asked.

"Downstairs, second door on the right. In the kitchen." Jason growled, making Penny uneasy.

"Well, why don't you get dressed while I call her, and then we can go to the park or something." She turned and walked out of the room before she could see his response.

Penny pushed open the kitchen door, (after confusing it with the broom closet, bathroom, and bar, it was actually the second door on the right...) and screamed. Sitting at the Kitchenette were two women and a man, all completely decked in Captain Hammer gear.

"Who are you?" They spoke in unison, sizing up her sans-clothing state.

"P-p-penny, who are you?" She was frozen in the doorway.

"I'm Captain Hammer's biggest fan." They said, scaring Penny.

"Penny? What's going-" Captain Hammer pushed Penny out of the doorway once he saw who had invaded his kitchen.

"Haven't I told you guys to leave enough already?" He asked angrily. "Get out of my house." He commanded, and Penny was glad his anger was not directed at her. The intruders scurried out faster then Penny thought possible.

"Are you okay? They didn't touch you did they?" Penny noticed that Captain Hammer was doing some 'touching' of his own.

"I'm fine, I was just surprised." Penny explained, wiggling her way towards the phone. She dialed Nicole's work number, and held up a finger to shush Captain Hammer before he could say anything else.

Penny's face fell when she was redirected to Nicole's answering machine, but she left a message anyways, and hung up the phone.

"Would you mind terribly taking me back home so I can change?" Penny asked, pulling the throw tighter around her.

* * *

"We can sit here." Penny suggested, plunking down on the wood bench amid a sea of ducks. Captain Hammer followed suite, putting his arm around her shoulders. Penny wasn't used to the show of possessiveness that had come with dating a superhero.

'Is it that he's a hero? Or is the possessive aspect just plain Jason?' Penny pondered the new idea as she swirled her frozen yogurt around with her spork.

"What's on your mind?" Captain Hammer asked, jerking Penny from her thoughts.

"Why they gave us sporks instead of spoons back at Berry Good." The lie slipped out so easily it was unsettling, weren't relationships supposed to be based on truth?

"Is that a problem?" Penny couldn't tell how he meant to ask that, but it made her feel ashamed for bringing it up in the first place.

"Not at all, it just strikes me as strange, why would a frozen yogurt place need sporks?" She pondered. They fell into comfortable silence, and Penny found herself leaning against Hammer's solid chest while they ate.

"Hey, I have an idea. Why don't we get one of those little pedal boats and go around the lake?" Captain Hammer suggested enthusiastically. Penny could feel all the color drain from her face. If there was one thing she feared more then death, it was boats.

"I don't think that's such a good-" But he was gone before she could finish. Penny saw him at the rental kiosk, and she watched him get into the boat, paddling it out to the middle of the lake before he realized she hadn't followed him.

"Penny!" He motioned for her to join him, but she shook her head and stayed on shore.

"All I'm saying is that you could have come out on the lake with me." Captain Hammer repeated for the third time as they pulled up to Penny's apartment.

"I'm sorry. I should have told you earlier that I'm terrified of boats." Penny apologized, walking over to the building door.

"Do you not trust me to keep you safe?" He continued on in the elevator. "Penny, I'm Captain Hammer." He put his hands on her shoulders. "You'll always be safe with me."

"I know." Penny sighed, and Captain Hammer dropped his hands, content with keeping one arm around her waist. The lift reached her floor, and they almost ran into a sweatshirt-hooded person on their way out.

"Sorry!" Penny called over her shoulder, but Captain Hammer was urging her down the hall so quickly, she didn't know if the strange man even heard her.

"Well, I'll see you at the Memorial tomorrow?" Penny asked, looking up at Captain Hammer before she opened her door.

"I don't know Penny, it's an important city event. Are you sure you'll be safe?" Penny was taken aback, before she realized that he was joking.

"As long as I'm with you I will be." She said, reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck, and kissing him lightly.

"See you tomorrow then." He smiled, letting her go.

"Bye." She smiled and waved before she shut the door.

* * *

Hey Guys! I just wanted to let you know that my new years resolution is to write one short story a day. This month, the topic is Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-Long Blog, and most of those stories will not make it to this website, so if you want to read a couple more stories, you can go to http:// blondiebelle. livejournal. com

I want to thank both Zydrate, and Pen E Forthotz for their reviews. It is really appreciated, and I hope the rest of the story can live up to your expectations.

On a side note: I don't want to beg for reviews, but guys, forty of you read the story, and only two people took the time to comment? Just type in your favorite part of the story, or something that needs to be fixed. I'd really appreciate the effort. :)


	3. Act II Part II

Okay, so this part deviates a little bit from the actual show, but I don't think you guys will mind much...

Thank you: Pen E Forthotz, Zydrate and Emilie Rose, unfortunately this will not have a happy ending (I know, I totally ruined it for you, right?) but I'm working on an alternate ending fic, that will explore the idea of Penny's survival...

Disclaimer: If some of the dialogue sounds familiar, that's cuz it's from the show. I don't own any of it, and this was purely a personal exploration project. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

"You know, it's so dumb that we've been coming here so long and never spoke." Penny mentioned to Billy later that day at the coin wash.

"I know," he agreed tossing a few things into his washer. "All those long months doing this stunningly boring chore..." He turned his machine on. Penny looked down, a little embarrassed.

"I'm a fan of laundry." She shrugged, praying he wouldn't be offended.

"Psych! I love it!" Billy's reaction made Penny almost drop her clothes. She flashed back to Hammer's scoff in the park, and how ashamed it had made her feel. But now, with Billy, he seemed to be the embarrassed one.

"The smell of fabric softener, the feel of warm clothes in your hands." Penny smiled, she really did enjoy laundry day, and having a friend was already making it better.

"Hey, this is weird." Billy commented, looking in the paper bag he had brought with him, along with his hamper. "I ordered one frozen yogurt, and they gave me two. You don't happen to like frozen yogurt, do you?" He asked, gazing in what Penny could tell was mock-confusion at the 'extra' container.

"I love it." She said, putting the last of her load in her machine.

"You're kidding, what a crazy random happenstance. Here." He offered her the yogurt, and dug sporks out of the bag. Penny guessed that if she brought up how strange it was to have sporks in a frozen yogurt place, Billy wouldn't laugh at her.

"How was your weekend?" He asked, sitting on the washer. "Did you spend the whole time hunting wild signatures?" He was only half joking, and it made Penny feel light inside at the fact that he had actually remembered her plight.

"Um, actually, I went on a date." She answered nervously, before shoving a sporkful of yogurt in her mouth. She didn't even know why telling Billy about her date made her nervous.

"Get right outta town. How was that?" He seemed genuinely interested.

"Unexpected." Penny found herself telling the truth. When Nicole had asked earlier, she had simply said 'nice.'

"He's a really good-looking guy, and I thought he was kind of cheesy at first."

"Trust your instincts." Billy mumbled, and Penny felt the unanticipated urge to defend Captain Hammer from Billy's cynical remarks. Even if Captain Hammer wouldn't actually hear them.

"But he turned out to be totally sweet. Sometimes people are layered like that." Okay, so the last part was a little bit of a dig, but if Billy couldn't understand the possibilities of a relationship with the city's greatest hero, Penny figured he deserved it.

"There's something totally different underneath, then what's on the surface." She continued, wanting to be done with the topic.

"And sometimes there's a third, even deeper level, and that one is the same as the top, surface one." There was an attitude change in Billy, Penny noticed, as he explored another admittedly unique metaphor.

"Like with pie." Then Billy-her-friend was back. "So are you gonna see him again?" Penny found herself having to refocus her thoughts before she answered.

"I think I will." This answer made her happy, but it seemed to have the exact opposite effect on Billy.

"Billy?" She asked tentatively. "you're driving the spork into your leg." Penny said, a little concerned _'This is why the fro-yo places only need spoons' _the thought randomly popped into her head.

"So I am, hilarious." He said, tersely still not removing the plastic utensil from his leg. Penny giggled, a little nervously, and Billy did the same.

"You know. It's really strange that there are only sporks at that frozen yogurt place." Penny started, to cut the nervous tension.

"It is, isn't it?" Billy agreed, finally stopping the uneasy laughter. He leaned in closer to Penny and whispered, "It's a conspiracy, they're filing the spoons down just for you." This brought on a whole new round of genuine laughter.

* * *

Penny was panicking, she had spent so long job hunting, that now she was sure she would be late for her date with Hammer for the Mayor's dedication. In fact, she had just enough time to change into a floral print dress and put on a little mascara before Captain Hammer was knocking on her door.

"Hey!" Penny pulled the door open and gestured for Captain Hammer to come in. "I'm almost ready." She called halfway to the bathroom. She brushed her teeth, and walked back to the living room, to find Captain Hammer still standing in the doorway, looking around her apartment in slight disgust.

"Okay. I'm ready." Penny waved to get his attention.

"Why do you live here?" Captain Hammer asked as she locked her door, and they walked down the hallway.

"Um, because it's all I can afford." Penny explained, embarrassed that he was so openly scornful. "I'm kind of jobless."

"I'll hire you." Captain Hammer offered, as he unlocked the car.

"What could I do for you?" Penny asked sullenly.

"I can think of lots of things you could do for me." He offered suggestively, making Penny regret even asking.

"A career as your whore. Sounds great." She griped. The whole car swerved, and Penny looked over at Captain Hammer, terrified.

"What's wrong, why are you being like this?" But the question wasn't caring, no, Penny saw through Hammer's worry about her, to his worry that he was going to be embarrassed by her at the memorial event.

"It's nothing. I'm sorry." She put her hand over the one of his that had taken up permanent residence on her thigh.

* * *

The event reminded Penny of her high school graduation, except, not so many people had been staring at her then, and there was no promise of open doors at the end of this ceremony. It was just a lot of the mayor, Captain Hammer, and someone named Johnny Snow talking about how great they were, and how they are keeping the city safe. Penny was actually thankful when people had started screaming. It was the villain from the van incident, but that was all Penny could see before she was hoisted up and hidden behind the stage. There was the beginnings of an evil monologue, in what Penny secretly thought was one of the sexiest voices she'd ever heard. But the voice was cut off by sounds of mechanical failings, and then there was more screaming and a crash. Penny couldn't take not knowing anymore, and she poked her head over the edge of the stage. On one side of the bridge was Captain Hammer, and on the other side was what looked like a car accident, if one car had been dropped on top of two others.

Penny suddenly felt terribly afraid. She started shaking thinking about how close to the destruction she had been.

"Excuse me?" She asked the nearest person on the stage. He was wearing a parka, what was his name again?

"Mr. Snow?" That got his attention.

"Yes?" He asked, striking what he thought was probably a heroic pose. It wasn't, and Penny wasn't really in the mood to deal with any super heros at the moment.

"Can you take me to my, my boyfriend, over there?" She asked, suddenly feeling sick.

"Of course." Johnny jumped off the stage, and swept Penny into his arms. Penny was a little annoyed at the theatrics, but glad that she didn't need to walk all the way to Hammer herself.

"Captain." Johnny called, struggling to take the last few steps. Penny felt herself being passed from person to person.

"Jason." Penny murmured as Captain Hammer put her in his car, and strapped the seatbelt.

"What, Penny?" He asked, sounding genuinely concerned, and Penny made a conscious effort to look at him.

"Home?" She didn't want anymore surprises, and Jason taking her to his house would have been very unwelcome.

"Sure Penny." Penny smiled, liking how nice he sounded, before losing focus again.

* * *

"Penny? Penny Elisabet Cooper, wake up!" Penny groggily opened her eyes, and was nearly blinded by the sun.

"Oh thank God!" Nicole collapsed back. "We were scared you weren't going to wake up." Penny blinked, confused.

"We?" She asked, trying to prop herself up.

"Nice to see you awake Penny." Penny turned to see Captain Hammer standing next to her room mate. "I have a meeting to get to, but I'll see if I can stop by later today." He said, before kissing her forehead.

"Get better, doll." And he left.

"He was here all night. Isn't that sweet?" Nicole gushed once he had left the apartment.

"Nicole, what happened?" Penny asked, leaning back against her headboard.

"Well, I'm not really sure. Captain Hammer brought you in late last night, and you were out cold. Simon and I were so worried."

"Simon?"

"The Beatles looking guy from next door? Oh Penny, he's so sweet, and wonderful-" The doorbell rang, effectively cutting Nicole's rant off. "He's here!" She squealed, jumping up to answer the door.

"Now you can meet her for real." Penny heard Nicole babble in the hall before she could see

her.

"Penny, this is Simon." Nicole introduced her slightly damp crush. Penny smiled, and managed to shake his hand without flinching, too much.

"Um, I brought a friend. I hope you guys don't mind. He was already over, and-" Penny thought

it was cute that Simon babbled too.

"Billy?" Penny asked, seeing the other man over Simon's shoulder.

"Penny?" He replied, with equal surprise, before breaking into a grin, and pushing past Simon to sit on Nicole's recently vacated stool.

"What a crazy random happenstance." He said, and Penny giggled at the repeat use of the odd phrase.

"What happened?" He asked softly, concern lighting in his stunningly blue eyes. Penny forgot how to speak for a second, after realizing how nice his eyes actually were, and Nicole took over.

"She passed out last night, and just slept all day. It's probably stress, a lot has gone on with Penny this last week." Billy's focus turned from Nicole back to Penny, his gaze questioning.

"There was an accident, yesterday. At the memorial bridge." Penny realized how incredibly lame that sounded.

"It takes more stress then that to make someone pass out for the whole day." Billy chided, in an attempt to get the rest of the story out of her.

"Well, this week, I lost my job, was almost hit by a van, got a boyfriend-"

"Is that what he is now?" Billy asked angrily, and Penny decided that having sex with a superhero shouldn't go on the list she was reciting.

"I met an amazing guy to do laundry with, and yesterday, I was almost attacked by a villain." Penny finished, feeling tired from thinking about it. Billy mumbled something like 'I wasn't even close to hitting you.'

"What?" Penny asked.

"An amazing new laundry buddy? Really?" He looked so happy.

"Well, yeah. Of course, who else would save me from that 'stunningly boring chore?'" She asked jokingly. They both started laughing.

"I can't believe I said that." Penny tried to breath evenly.

"I can't believe you remember that." Billy remarked, his face a little red from the lack of oxygen.

"I remember a lot." Penny admitted, a little shyly.

"Like what?" Billy asked, silently challenging her.

"Your rotting fish metaphor." She replied without thinking, and Billy started laughing again.

"I don't even remember that."

"Told you, impressive memory." Penny tapped her temple, wincing at the headache it brought on.

"Are you sure you're okay? Maybe you should go see a doctor or something." Billy got up, alarmed.

"No, no, no. Billy sit down. Nicole's a nurse at the shelter, and she already checked me out. That's as good of a look over I can afford."

"I know how that is." Billy muttered. Penny didn't really like this faux-secret keeping, and was especially peeved that she couldn't do anything about it.

"Penny." Nicole popped into the room. Penny hadn't even realized that she and Simon had left.

"Phone." Nicole announced, passing the cordless over Billy's head.

"It's Hammer." She announced, as Penny held the phone to her ear.

"Hey!" Penny answered the phone, shooing Nicole from her spot in the doorway.

"No, I'm fine. Billy's here. Well, it was kind of a surprise. No, he's friends with Simon. The guy you met last night. Hon, he's just a friend." Penny started to feel a little dizzy, and she didn't realize she was swaying until Billy put a hand on her shoulder to steady her. "No, every thing's fine, I was actually going to go to sleep soon, I'm still pretty tired." She yawned. "A surprise? What? Oh, well then I'll see you tomorrow. Love you too." She hung up the phone, and set it on the nightstand, she turned back to catch the end of Billy's unsettled expression.

"Are you okay?" She asked, taking his hand. He looked up, and started stammering.

"I-I'm fine."

"Oh."

"I should go, let you get your rest." He stood abruptly.

"Bye." Penny replied weakly. Billy squeezed her hand comfortingly.

"See you tomorrow." He promised before walking out.

* * *

"I just, you know, really think I'm qualified for this, this job." Penny had gotten him to open up, finally.

"And I just can't get my foot in the door." Penny wondered what type of job this was, where they wouldn't hire Billy. He was just so nice.

"I'm sure you will." She encouraged.

"I just wanna do great things you know. I wanna be an achiever, like Bad Horse." She looked

up, surprised and confused.

"The Thoroughbred of Sin?" Why would her sweet, caring Billy want to be like the most evil, vile, villain on the planet.

"I meant Gandhi." He stammered, looking equally surprised that she knew who he was talking about.

"Well," Penny sighed, "I've gotten turned down from plenty of jobs." Fifteen in the past week, she added in her head, she couldn't even get a job at the children's' jewelry store. "Even fired a few times." She relayed, sheepishly.

"I can't imagine anyone firing you." Billy scoffed. The flattery in his comment was stamped out by Penny's memory of Mr. Johnson, when he told her she was done.

"Neither, could I." She replied, wanting to forget the jobs she'd already been fired from. "Now I can visualize it really well." She realized the abrupt answer had made them both uneasy.

"But you know, everything happens-" She began reciting the mantra that had helped her through every rough spot when Billy interrupted.

"Don't say 'for a reason'." He warned.

"No! I'm just saying, everything happens." She explained.

"Not to me." And Penny couldn't tell if her was being spoiled, or a pessimist.

"Billy, when I was a kid, my dad left us. My mom tried to raise my by herself, but she had to work, a lot, and I barely saw her. I almost didn't make it to high school, Billy, and when I did, all it brought were terrible relationships." She shook her head. This was beginning to sound like a Penny pity party.

"But, instead of being depressed, I looked around and saw how there were people worse off then me. Even when my own mother kicked me out, and I lived on the streets, I was better off then other people. That's why I do charity work. I can bring hope and light to these people that have it worse then I do." They had moved to the bench near the window, and Penny felt magnetically drawn to Billy. She leaned in, until her conscience reminded her that Captain Hammer would kill Billy if he found out. She frantically groped for something to say to break the tension.

"It's like Captain Hammer's always saying-"

"Right, him. How are things with cheesy-on-the-outside." Penny almost laughed at Billy's horrible nickname.

"Good, they're good." She answered, still feeling awkward. "He's... nice." She continued, thinking how strange it was that she could use the word to describe Billy, and yet use it in a whole different way to describe Captain Hammer. "I'll be interested to know what you think if him, he said he might stop by." That was a lie, he had said he would pick her up, because he 'didn't want her running around with strange men who may take advantage of her delicate condition.'

"Stop by here?" Billy asked, looking strange.

"Yeah." Penny replied, wondering where else Billy could have thought she'd meant.

"Oh, goodness. Look at my wrist. I gotta go." Penny was mystified by his perplexing behavior.

"But.." 'But I really want you to meet him.' Was what she was going to say. What came out was.

"But what about your clothes?" She watched him rush to the washing machine, one that wasn't even his to begin with, lift the lid, and proclaim that he 'didn't love these.' Before turning and running directly into Captain Hammer himself. The ending filled Penny with a sort of glee, she didn't know how she would have forgiven Billy if he had actually skipped out on meeting Captain Hammer.

"Billy, this is Captain Hammer." She introduced, feeling giddy.

"Oh, Billy, the laundry buddy." Captain Hammer shook Billy's hand with a little more force then necessary. "Well, it is very nice to meet you."

"We're meeting now for the very first time." Billy looked like a trapped rat. It made Penny feel bad for making him stay.

"You look horribly familiar." There was an emphasis on horrible that Penny didn't understand, and made Billy look ready to run for the hills.

"Have I seen you at the gym?" Hammer asked. "I don't go to the gym, I'm just naturally like this." He bragged, stepping on Billy's reply. Penny eyed Hammer appreciatively, knowing that he didn't have what normal people would expect to be natural muscles.

"Who wants to know what the Mayor is doing behind closed doors?" Captain hammer asked, causing several people in the laundry mat to look over at the trio. Without waiting for Penny or Billy to answer, he continued.

"He is signing over a certain building to a Caring Hands group as a new homeless shelter."

"Oh my God!" Penny couldn't breathe, she was so excited.

"Yep. Apparently the only signature he needed was my fist." Captain Hammer smiled. "But with a pen, in it. That I was signing with." He clarified, seeing the confused expressions around him.

"I-I can't believe it." Penny tripped over the words in her elation. Life couldn't be better right now, she realized. Her boyfriend and her best friend were getting along, she achieved the cause of her dreams, and if she played her cards right, she could have her job back.

"Congratulations." Billy cheered half heartedly.

"Thank you, thank you." Penny felt a little overwhelmed, and didn't think of how it would make Billy feel when she found herself being kissed by Captain Hammer. But the buzzer on the dryer went off, reminding her that there was still mundane life to be lived, before she got to her dreams. Captain Hammer let her go to get her clothes. She pulled the load out of the machine, and set about folding the bigger pieces so they wouldn't be too badly wrinkled when she got home. Penny looked over to the doorway, where they were both still standing. They looked like they were having an animated conversation, and she was glad that Jason didn't seem to be scaring Billy off. Penny finished, and waved goodbye to Billy, before being ushered out the door.

"So, what do you think?" Penny asked once they were in Hammer's car.

"I don't like him Penny." Jason answered, taking her hand. "In fact, I really don't think you should see him again."

"What? Why?" Penny exclaimed, looking hurt.

"Penny, he's dangerous." Jason explained.

"But Billy's my best friend!" She cried.

"Penny." The car stopped, and Jason put his arm around her shoulders. "I can't let you put yourself in danger like this." But Penny was resolved, she wasn't going to give up Billy without a fight. She got out of the car and walked towards Jason's front door. He quickly caught up to her on the stoop, surprised at her change in behavior. He was even more surprised when she grabbed his shirt and kissed him rather forcefully.

"What if I change your mind?" She asked, her voice taking on a heavy tone Jason had never heard before. He couldn't get the front door unlocked fast enough.

* * *

You know what's sad? I wasn't able to write about the scene between Capt. Hammer and Billy in the laundromat, because Penny wasn't there :(

Review!


	4. Act III

Hey guys! It's the final chapter! (sniff) I want to thank everyone who took the time to read this. I really hope you enjoyed it, because I know I enjoyed writing it!

And I want to specially thank all the people who have reviewed this story, you guys give me the warm fuzzies :)

On to Act Three!

* * *

blondiebelle. livejournal .com (One more week of Dr. Horrible Stories!)

* * *

Act III

Penny's days had become a whirlwind of activity. There were news reports, interviews, and the setting up of the shelter to oversee. She looked at the badge that hung from her neck.

"Caring Hands Shelter Manager" It was a couple steps up from her old job, and the pay was more then enough to cover her and Nicole's living expenses.

"Hey guys, The beds can go up stairs!" She directed the moving men to where her boyfriend was single handedly carrying the cots up two flights of stairs because the elevator had been out of service for almost two years. Everything she had wanted to happen, had happened. Penny was pretty convinced that she hadn't stopped smiling since she started working on the shelter.

"Penny!" She heard Hammer calling her name from the second story window. Penny raced up the stared to see what was wrong.

"What?" She asked breathlessly entering on of the dorm style rooms. Penny was greeted with the sight of twelve beds lined up in the remodeled room, and her very proud looking hero standing in the midst of it all. Penny sank down onto the nearest bed, tears spilling from her eyes.

"Penny, what's wrong?" Jason asked, sitting next to her, and pulling her to him.

"Nothing. It's just amazing to see how far we've come." Penny sniffed.

"You know, we could do it on every one of these beds, and nobody would know." Penny giggled, playfully punching Hammer in the chest.

"There's an interview soon, they'd know." Penny chastised, wiping her eyes.

"Right." The interviews were rather annoying after a while. It was all the same questions, and Penny was usually ignored, in favor of her more famous boyfriend.

"But we promised."

* * *

Penny found herself alone at the laundry mat, picking at one of the pair of frozen yogurts she had picked up. She wanted to apologize to Billy for the way she had run out on Saturday. Heck, she just wanted to talk to him. Billy had been all Penny could think about for the past few days. She didn't know why, she was living the fairy tale ending she'd wanted. Simon had said that he hadn't heard from Billy since Sunday, and Penny was a little worried. Her stomach lurched when she thought he wouldn't show, but she chalked it up to the funny virus she seemed to be coming down with. She waited for two hours after her clothes were done, even resorting to running one load twice to stall. It didn't matter, Billy never showed.

* * *

"So, when is this Shindig?" Nicole asked, fluffing her curled blonde hair in the bathroom mirror behind Penny.

"At four." Penny replied passively, putting on mascara.

"Every thing's gonna be fine Penny, and afterwards, we'll do dinner." Penny brightened

considerably at that thought.

"Come on, you need to calm down. You're going to open a shelter today, then go to dinner with your boyfriend, and incredibly amazing room mate, and then said boyfriend will take you back to his house, and compromise you." Nicole said, casually applying lipstick. Penny thought the old fashioned term sounded strange, and when she didn't reply, Nicole shot her a worried look.

"You're not going to heave again are you?" Nicole asked urgently. Penny shook her head, the thought of vomiting again making her want to cry.

"Come on, we need to get going." Nicole picked up her pale friend and they walked out to the hall.

"Simon says his room mate will let us borrow his van." Nicole said, when they stopped outside the neighbors door.

"Simon!" She called as she knocked on the door.

"It's unlocked" Penny could hear Simon call through the door. Nicole turned the knob, and opened the door. He was standing awkwardly on the other side.

"Heh, I had a little trouble with the knob." He explained, giving Nicole a light hug, so he didn't ruin her ensemble by getting it wet..

"Well, we should get going!" Nicole said, urging both her friend and her date out into the hall.

"Mike! We're taking the van!" Simon called back before the door shut.

The van in question was a large black windowless utility van, with a huge, hot pink P emblazoned on the side. Penny spent the whole ride over wondering what it stood for, when she wasn't fearing for her life. Simon wasn't the best driver, and his 'overactive pores' caused the wheel to slip many, many times.

"Penny?" Nicole had to poke her shoulder to get her attention. "We're here." Penny stepped out of the side of the car, sliding the door shut absentmindedly.

"Penny?" Captain Hammer's voice rang out over the small crowd that had gathered outside of the building.

"You know, Nicole, I just remembered, I have this thing I have to go to, sorry bye!" Simon shouted out the van window, before peeling out of the parking lot.

"Sometimes, I wonder why I like him." Nicole muttered, staring after the van.

"Penny, what were you doing near that car?" Captain Hammer asked, sounding overly concerned.

"Nothing, why?" Penny realized she was whining like a teenager, and tried to compose herself.

"That's the Pink Pummeler's van. He's not a huge threat, but he's near the top of the henchmen's union, and generally not a safe person to be around." That struck a chord with Penny.

"Not safe like Billy?" She asked sharply, before stalking into the building.

There was nothing left to help with, so Penny just took her seat on the stage. She looked around what used to be the hotel dining room with pride. They had retiled the floor, and repapered the walls. There was a white board in the corner that somebody's kids had decorated with the Caring Hands logo, and Penny could make out a little bit of writing in the corner of the board that said 'we love Penny.' She felt herself tearing up again. Penny took some deep breaths to calm down.

"I know this must seem crazy," Penny said to the empty room. "But I don't know if I like my boyfriend as much as I should." She shook her head. She really was crazy.

"I mean, he chased off my best friend, and now I feel, just kind of lost, I guess." Penny shrugged. "I just kind of wish there was someone to tell me what to do now." Something shifted near the draped statue, and Penny gasped. She waited a few seconds, but nothing appeared.

"Penny Cooper?" The Mayor was at the door.

"Yes sir?" Penny asked.

"It's just nice to finally meet the biggest charity worker in L.A. That's all." He said, climbing the

steps and taking his seat.

"Well, thank you sir. I'm so grateful that you donated the building to us. It's such a huge relief to know that the homeless will have a place to be off the streets." The doors flew open, and Captain Hammer strode in, followed by reporters, and then the actual audience. Including, Penny noted with chagrin, the three people that had crashed Hammers house that one morning, she shuddered at the memory.

The mayor was given the signal to start the ceremony, and he walked to the podium.

"Ladies and Gentlemen. Welcome to the grand opening of the Penny Cooper Homeless Shelter." Penny blushed, she didn't know that they had named the building after her.

"Only a week ago, a man came to me with this proposition. He explained how there are enough unfortunates in the city to need a new center, and he brought to my attention a charity who had enough means to refurbish this building, but not to buy it. Well, I told him 'of course you can use the building.' This man, and his charming girlfriend have been here for countless hours fixing up the place so we can use it to provide shelter to those less fortunate, and in just a few minutes, we'll unveil the statue of the man himself." The audience burst into applause. "Thank you, Thank you." 'Play nice.' Captain Hammer whispered into Penny's ear. 'Or you'll regret it.'

"Justice has a name. And the name it has, besides 'Justice', is Captain Hammer. Ladies and Gentlemen, your hero." Penny patted Captain Hammer's knee in encouragement she knew he didn't need.

"Thank you, thank you, Mayor, for those kind words." Captain Hammer pulled the cue cards Penny made him from his glove, and Penny felt relieved, he wasn't the best talker, and she didn't need the embarrassment that would come with Hammer trying to write his own speech.

"I hate the homeless." He started, and Penny could see the confused looks that flitted through the primarily homeless audience.

"--ness problem that plagues our city. Everyone should have the basic..." He trailed off. 'Everyone should have the basic commodities, that are necessary in leading a healthy well-adjusted life.' Penny mentally urged. If she had gotten enough signatures, it would have been her giving this speech. Penny bit her lip, trying to curb the overwhelming sense of disappointment. Instead of continuing on with his speech, Captain Hammer looked straight out into the audience and said.

"I don't need tiny cue-cards." Before Penny could do anything, the cards she had worked so hard on disappeared into his gloves again.

"When I fell deeply in love with my serious, long-term girlfriend Penny- wave your hand Penny." She did, absolutely mortified at the attention. Everyone already knew they were dating, he didn't need to bring it up in front of these people.

"There she is." He announced with pride. "Cute huh? Sort of a quiet, nerdy thing. Not my usual, but nice." Nicole was motioning for her to come off stage. Despite the earlier comment, Nicole had a strict sense of propriety, and the ceremony had already become too offensive. Penny shook her head no, but she wondered why she felt the need to stay. Captain Hammer was obviously only using her to look more humanitarian, and so he didn't have to worry about being followed by crazy one-night-stands, she assumed. She felt more comfortable with Billy, the man who bought her frozen yogurts, and made her laugh when she was sick, then she did with the man who had begun to pay her rent, and pose as her bodyguard. Penny rolled her eyes at his transparent speech. Lassie? Since when do people enjoy being compared to dogs?

"So I thank my girlfriend, Penny. Yeah, we totally had sex." Penny felt sick with the embarrassment of having her personal life put out for everyone to see, and decided to follow Nicole out at that moment. Anything the 'hero' Captain Hammer was planning on doing to make her 'regret' not playing nice, couldn't be worse the the intense embarrassment she was suffering right now. She got up and slowly edged her way off the side of the stage. Maybe, she hoped, Captain Hammer would stay so wrapped up in his speech, he wouldn't notice that she had gone. She was just going to sit outside until the end of the ceremony anyway, and she had been feeling sick, she practiced excuses as she tip-toed around the edge of the room. Captain Hammer was leading the audience in a sing-a-long version of his speech. She could see his little groupies practically fainting when he looked at them. Penny was so lost in her scrutiny, she ran into someone.

"Sorry." She whispered. "Simon?" She questioned. He was kneeling on the floor, slipping something under the tarp covering the statue.

"Penny, shouldn't you be up there with your Captain boyfriend or something?" Simon spluttered, trying to get up off the ground.

"I wasn't feeling too good, so I was headed outside. I thought you said you had a thing to get to?" Penny crouched down, and continued the whispered conversation.

"Oh, yeah. I still need to do that." He replied, getting up and sneaking out the propped open emergency exit. Penny was absolutely baffled by what happened, and decided the best thing to do would be to get out, and get some air. She continued on her way out, when her heel caught on a corner of the canvas, pulling it free from the monument, the heavy red sheet knocked Penny to the ground. Suddenly, an evil laugh filled the hall. Penny pushed the tarp off of her to see that what she had uncovered was not a statue of Captain Hammer, but the sadistic man in the lab coat that was responsible for all the changes in her life. The mood of the room had changed, there was a heavy blanket of tension, and Penny had the sinking feeling that she may not make it outside. But she started crawling to the door anyways.

Penny almost had a heart attack when the first shot was fired. There were people every where. Suddenly the villain's hypnotic spell was broken, and everyone was running for their lives. Penny stayed on the ground despite the crushed fingers she had to deal with, because as far as she could tell, the man was only firing into the ceiling.

"No sign of Penny, good, I would give anything not to have her see..." The use of her name caught Penny's attention, what could he possibly have to do with this rogue? She sat up to get a better look, and she could have sworn they made eye contact, he looked so familiar.

"It's gonna be bloody, head up Billy, buddy, there's no time for mercy." Penny's own words hit her so hard she almost vomited there in the room. Everything made sense now. All the cryptic little comments, the disappearing, and the increased hatred for Captain Hammer. It was Billy. Her best friend and this criminal were the same person. And now this person was going to kill her boyfriend. For what reason, she didn't know. And all she could do was sit back and watch. Billy leveled the gun and muttered something, before the same mechanical failing sound from the bridge dedication echoed off the walls. All at once, Hammer was unfrozen, had punched Billy so hard it sent him across the room, and the gun skidded haphazardly after it's owner. Penny started slinking along the wall, in a last ditch effort to get out, it was only her, Hammer and Billy now, but before she could move, an explosion of unbearable pain rocketed through her body.

"Penny, Penny." Someone was calling her. Penny tried to focus on where the voice was coming from, but she couldn't, she couldn't grasp anything but the pain that radiated from her chest.

"Billy?" She guessed, the pain making it hard to remember anything. "Is that you?"

"Penny, hold on!" Why did he sound so worried? There was a gun, Penny remembered. Did Billy get shot?

"Billy, are you alright?" She asked. It was so hard to breath, but she had to make sure Billy was okay.

"Hold on." Was the maniac still there? Penny wondered. No wonder Billy was so worried.

"It's okay, it's okay." Why was it so hard for her to speak?

"Captain Hammer will save us." She reassured him.

Then everything went dark.

* * *

Aww...

But you all knew that was coming, right? I have to say, I really do love the ending of the original story. It makes a person think...

Well, this is the end of Flipping the Coin, but stay tuned for the next story...

**What if Dr. Horrible _had_ killed Captain Hammer? Would he really get what he wanted?**

**"It Could Happen"**

Coming Soon

Review!


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